Broncos OLB Von Miller will be in uniform for the first time this season Sunday night. / Chris Humphreys, USA TODAY Sports

by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - As Von Miller rejoins his teammates for his first road trip of the season this weekend, when the Denver Broncos travel to Indianapolis to face the Colts, he'll face the first dilemma of his return to football: Do his tailored suits, the required attire for team flights, still fit?

"I haven't worn anything like that in a while," Miller said this week, as he sat inside an empty locker at the Broncos' training facility.

As Miller chatted away, it was impossible not to realize just how the star pass rusher spent much of his time during the six weeks he was suspended by the NFL for violating the substance abuse policy. Clearly he was essentially living in the weight room, bulking up his upper body.

When Miller returned to practice earlier this week, he said he weighed 270 pounds. Last season, when he had 18½ sacks, Miller played at about 255 pounds, and that was nine more than his rookie weight in 2011.

Miller had been focused on gaining weight throughout the offseason and told reporters this spring he was at 260 pounds but still wanted to get bigger. The muscle-building plan intensified during his suspension, and Miller now says he's the biggest- and yet the fittest - he's ever been in his life.

In addition to the time spent with Broncos strength coach Luke Richesson, Miller said he worked to improve his cardiovascular conditioning through interval training and repeated short sprints to try and replicate the intensity of football plays.

Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio isn't concerned about how much Miller weighs or how big his shoulders are now. All Del Rio wants to see is if Miller still has the speed and flexibility and power that for two years made him one of the premier pass rushers in the NFL.

Del Rio has liked what he's seen so far in practice. But the real test will come Sunday, when Miller can go full-speed and try to sack Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, who has impressive mobility and ability to escape the pocket.

"I do have a sack celebration up my sleeve," Miller said. "Hopefully I can get one."

Miller's return gives the Broncos a full complement of defensive players for the first time this season. Denver played its first five games without cornerback Champ Bailey, who returned from a foot injury last week but admitted he didn't play well against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Broncos also played last week without starting middle linebacker Wesley Woodyard (neck) and defensive end Robert Ayers (shoulder), who are both expected back Sunday night.

"It doesn't matter who's playing - we're still going to work the same kind of schedule and go through the same kind of grind. But obviously when you have your better players out there, you expect to play even better," Del Rio said.

"As far as defense, I feel like we got a good group of guys. We're going to be better as we go through the year. Some of the places where we're not playing so well now right now I feel very confident we'll continue to grow and play good defense as we go down the road here."

Miller's biggest impact should be on Denver's pass rush. The Broncos have 17 sacks without Miller, but now opposing offenses will have to adjust their blocking schemes to stop him. Denver can also alter the way it attacks opposing quarterbacks.

"Not to give away our game plan, but he does give us many more options to do different things on defense," Bailey said. "But you know, when you have a guy that talented you've got to find ways to make sure he's involved with every play. So he's going to be involved a lot."